[dklassen]

Guess it's time to start my own build thread. After 21 weeks of waiting my 2018 136" HT PM finally arrived. Don't even have a name for it yet… not sure if I ever will. Maybe I'll call it John Doe. My wife calls it the cracker box so maybe that will be it.

Going to try and keep the build pretty simple and modular. I have the IKEA Skorva adjustable rails and brackets for the bed platform. Also have the upper and lower factory side panels so I'm doing Thinsulate behind those, a Van Rug, ARB frig, Camco 57331 Olympian Wave-3 Catalytic Heater, porta potty, galley with sink, single burner stove of some kind, TV/DVD, Maxxair fan, 200w solar, couple of AGM's for the house and a battery isolator (It's my daily driver at least for a while).

Not sure what I'm going to do for the celling yet or the final finish work. Once I get everything functional I may enlist the help of a finish carpenter to box everything in and make it look pretty with cabinets and drawers. Also toying with the idea of doing an 80/20 build instead of all wood to keep it more modular.

It will generally be a local weekend warrior so no hard core winter camping in Alaska or summers in Death Valley. My goal is simple, clean functional and removable.

Stay tuned.

 

[Puddletown]

Good times!! let the fun begin and keep us posted.

 

[dklassen]

Thank you, I will.

 

[bitaria]

This is basically what we got too! Looks like your floors are bare, we got the factory composite.

80/20 is appealing for me, because the van will be in toy hauler configuration. Aluminum extrusions and sheet metal seem like better options for keeping things organized back there.

 

[dklassen]

I got a BedRug for the floor. I'm seriously considering 80/20 but it is a bit on the pricey side. The upside is I know how to work with it and have all the right equipment. The downside is my wife isn't a real big fan of the industrial look. I'm a total looser when it come to woodworking. Everything else I can pretty much handle.

 

[dklassen]

There must be a 100 different ways to skin a cat with these conversions. Right now I'm trying to keep myself from over thinking every little thing. Got my BedRug in the van today so that's a little something. I have about 36sf of Noico so I'm going to cover the wheel wells and a few other places. Trying to decide on insulation. Still leaning towards Thinsoluate but also considering some Polyiso instead. Also need to decide how to finish up the celling.

 

[Zoomyn]

I installed the aluminum-faced sound-quieting mat on in the heat of summer, coated the back & side door pretty heavy and of course the wheel tubs, worked great, but...

Once the cold hit and things like motor & transmission mounts harden up some really obnoxious booming reverb comes from the wide sheetmetal shell spaces in the cargo area, yeah I put poly-iso panels in everywhere but discovered they are transparent for low frequencies. True I'll be putting in walls & ceiling and maybe make that a non-issue but I wish I'd not skipped that expense.

If* I were looking at an empty new van again with Noico in hand I'd be doing the 20-25% coverage in centers of sheetmetal panels to dampen their natural resonance.

When it really gets cold the butyl sheets also turn rock hard and it's just their weight not their viscosity that drags noise level down, so overall van does get noisier in cold weather.

 

[dttocs]

There must be a 100 different ways to skin a cat with these conversions. Right now I'm trying to keep myself from over thinking every little thing. Got my BedRug in the van today so that's a little something. I have about 36sf of Noico so I'm going to cover the wheel wells and a few other places. Trying to decide on insulation. Still leaning towards Thinsoluate but also considering some Polyiso instead. Also need to decide how to finish up the celling.

Just to throw another thought in the mix (as if you didn't have enough already), if your wife doesn't like the 80/20 t-slot profile, maybe Quick Frame would be more appealing? Terra camper has a nice design with this. See this discussion for more details.

 

[dklassen]

Very interesting, thank you. I like the more modern look of 80/20 but my wife is insistent on more of a rustic white washed wood look. Although I very much like both styles, the modularity of 80/20 really appeals to me. Maybe if I used a black frame I could find a way to meld the two styles.

 

[MsNomer]

It should not be difficult to blend the two. The result could be stunning.

 

[dklassen]

And so it begins. Removed the the factory interior panels. That was fun. Got the vanrug in as well as some Noico sound deadening material. Quite amazing the difference going down the road now.

Few pics here.
http://www.midtenmaker.com/blog/envira/promaster-build/

 

[dklassen]

Bed rails in.

 

[WanderFil]

That is a clever way of using those ikea beams. Will you use the ikea slats also and put a matrress on top? Or attach plywood to it?

What mattress are you going with?

 

[dklassen]

Thanks. Found the Ikea beam idea right here in the forums. Going with plywood on top of the beams. Will also put some ventilation holes so the mattress can breath. We just happened to have an extra memory foam full mattress that fits perfectly.

A few new pics here.
http://www.midtenmaker.com/blog/envira/promaster-build/

 

[travelvanvan]

Excellent work! Good pictures on your website. I like the bars, though in pursuit of a bigger "garage" area, I might see if I can put the bed up higher somehow for my van.

Curious: your van took 21 weeks to arrive, in other words, over 5 months. Were you told it would take that long? I've been told 3 to 4 months. Am wondering mine will take longer than even 4 months.

 

[dobermin]

TravelVanVan - I have a 2017 159" EXT with several options -- I was told 5-6 months... It took 6...... I ordered WHITE because I heard Leatherman tools work better with white.

 

[RDinNHandAZ]

Let me clear here. I have 30 years personal experience and exposed carry everyday. I have saved myself from dying of thirst and have had the “adventure” posted on Leatherman’s site. I have emailed Tim directly about my several tools. I am a leatherman evangelist. Leatherman tools work with all colors equally well but the current “Wave” model does have a slight advantage for Sandstone Pearl vans. You will be able to save your ass fine in a white one.

 

[dklassen]

Interesting, I did notice my Wave seemed to work a little better once I got my white PM. The sales guy told me 8 - 10 weeks. I had a feeling it was BS but it is what it is. Given it took 21 weeks I just used that to beat them up on the price more.

 

[travelvanvan]

TravelVanVan - I have a 2017 159" EXT with several options -- I was told 5-6 months... It took 6...... I ordered WHITE because I heard Leatherman tools work better with white.

Ooh! I'm now slightly worried. :-/ But I'm sure it'll be worth the wait.

The sales guy told me 8 - 10 weeks. I had a feeling it was BS but it is what it is. Given it took 21 weeks I just used that to beat them up on the price more.

Thanks! I didn't know you could do price-beating after the fact. I hope I don't have to resort to it!

Also, if it's late, I'll miss a 2-3 week camping trip with it; will have to use my Caravan again. :-/

But then again, it'll be more time to research things. Which I'm finding is fun.

 

[dklassen]

Not only did I work him over on the price a bit more... not a lot but a little more. I said what other freebees are you going to give me for waiting so long? He said I can get you a Ram hat or something and I said that's not exactly what I had in mind. He said what then? I made him i give me a set of factory hubcaps (I ordered just the steel wheels). He sighed and disappeared for about 15 min then came back and asked is that all? I thought about going for an extended warranty but didn't want to press my luck.

and yes, it's worth the wait.